Girl Meets Insecurity
by SpecialK92
Summary: Cory has a new assignment. He wants the class to write about flaw that they have to figure out why they have it. After he sees what each student wrote, he pairs them off with someone. Cory puts Riley and Maya together. The girls have trouble with the assignment and they have a hard time talking about it. Will it effect their friendship or make it stronger?
1. Cory's Assignment

Over the weekend, Cory was coming up with a lesson plan. He wanted a good lesson that would go over well. He didn't want to study antiques again. The time they studied antiques, he made the mistake of saying he'd give extra credit, if his students brought in an antique. That led to Riley, Maya, Lucas and Farkle getting locked in the junk yard. He didn't want to do another canoe ride, because that didn't go over to well. When the class went for a canoe ride, they had to take water rafts. That led to Riley, Maya, and himself getting separated from the class.

"Topanga, do you have any ideas for a lesson plan?" Cory asked.

"Cory, shouldn't we be in bed? It is past mid-night," informed Topanga. "We have to get up tomorrow and go to work. You've had all weekend to come up with a lesson!"

"I just want a lesson that won't lead to any trouble. The last few times we've done a hands on lesson, something had happened. The kids are locked in a junk yard, or we get separated from the group. I just want to have a successfully lesson," answered Cory.

"If I give you a suggestion, will you be satisfied so we can go to bed?" Topanga asked.

"Yes," answered Cory.

"Okay, remember the time you talked about having different flaws in class? Well, why don't you have the class do a project on what caused them to have those flaws," suggested Topanga. "Now can we go to bed?"

Cory liked the idea. He thought it would be a prefect lesson to do. The next day, he wrote flaws on the board. Some of the students told him that they already had that lesson before. Cory explained the lesson.

"Yes, we have had that lesson. I remember all of you writing a flaw on your forehead, when Farkle was being bullied. I decided we are going to do a project on that. Something happened to you in the past to make you have that flaw. Sometimes people have flaws from an event in their life, having difficult teachers, not making a team, being bullied etc. I would like for you to think about it, write down some of those things down. Then I am going to read your papers. After I read your papers, I'm going to pair you with someone who has some been through some similar experiences. When I tell you who your partner is, I want you to get together and come up with a way to help you overcome that flaw," stated Cory. "I am going to give you the rest of class to think about your flaws and jot down some things."

Riley was got really nervous, once she heard about the lesson. Her flaw was insecurity. A lot had happened to her in her past to make her that way. She turned and looked at Maya. She looked just as nervous as Riley did. Her flaw was broken. She didn't know what had happened in Maya's life because they tried to not talk about unpleasant events. Riley wondered what made Maya feel broken. All Maya would say was when she had something that the other kids had, she felt good. However, when she didn't have what the other kids had, she felt left out or different.

Maya knew this was going to be a very hard assignment, she had never told anyone about those events before. Riley was scared of how people would look at her and she was scared that people wouldn't believe her. Some of those things she had never told Cory or Topanga. Riley was unware that Maya was feeling the same way she did. A lot occurred in her life besides that fact that her father left her mother.


	2. Riley's Flaw

But, Riley knew exactly what made her feel so insecure. She pulled out her note book and began to write about why she came so insecure. It all started when she was in the lower elementary grades. She could recall an event that took place back when she was in 1st grade. She had a very strict teacher. Everything had to be prefect. Onetime, during a writing lesson Riley was called on to answer a question. She was really scared of the teacher and it was hard to talk to her. Riley didn't know the answer, and she couldn't answer. So her teacher called on Missy Blandford.

"Missy, can you give me an answer?"

"Yes, the answer is a capital letter!"

"Great job, Missy got get a piece of candy out of the pink basket!"

Riley could still remember Missy getting out of her seat and going to get a piece of candy. She could remember the fear that she had inside. Her teacher looked at her with anger.

"You never try do you? I'm proud of Missy, but I'm disappointed in you Riley! I don't like you when you don't try!"

Riley was also always determined to get good grades in school. But there were times, when she had very hard classes. One year, science was very hard. She was used to getting A's and B's. On a mid-term report, she got a C. One of her teacher's asked to see her mid-term. She showed it to them. Riley still remembered what she was told.

"Riley, what happened? You are supposed to be an honor roll student."

Riley felt horrible because she tried as hard as she could. She remembered walking in the apartment in tears. Topanga asked her why she was crying. Riley showed her the mid-term report. Topanga called Riley's teacher to see what they could do, to bring up her grade. But, when Topanga called, the teacher had already left for the day.

One time Riley, was one of the best students in a math class. She always did her work and worked hard. Riley remembered a time, when she unit in math, which was graphs. She made a C on her report card. Her teacher had a talk with her.

"Riley, a C isn't acceptable. You are one of my best students and I expected better from you!"

"I tried, I just have trouble with graphs."

"You are just looking for an excuse, you just want to get away with making a C! You should have gotten a B or an A. I look at a C as "can do better, but average", I'm disappointed with you."

Riley always tried out for sports and the cheerleading squad. But, she never made any of the teams. During gym class, she was usually one of the last kids picked to be on a team.


	3. Maya's Flaw

Maya was sitting at her desk jotting things down. She began to fell broken when she was in elementary school. She could recall a time when she had to go to summer school, so she'd be ready for first grade. Almost every day, the teacher would have them color. She had motor skills and her coloring wasn't as good as everybody else's. She couldn't stay inside the lines. The teacher's aide was walking around the room. She looked down at Maya's coloring sheet. Maya could tell something was wrong.

"Maya, I want to see some real coloring, instead of that scribbling that you do!"

Maya was given another coloring sheet and had to start all over. Sometimes she could please that person. But most of the time she couldn't. She felt bad because everybody else could color better than she did. She also had trouble cutting things out and writing. Her mom went and got her a special pair of succors' to help her learn to cut better. But, not all her teachers would allow her to use them. She could recall an event that took place when she was in first grade. April was child abuse month. They had to trace their hand on a piece of construction paper. Then after they traced their hand, they had to cut it out. The teacher was going to decorate the door with all of the hand prints. The theme was "Hands are for helping, not for hitting." Maya completed the assignment and went to give the teacher's aide the assignment.

"Maya, you rushed through the assignment. Here's another piece of paper. You didn't try, you cut much better than that."

Maya took the piece of paper and went back to her seat. She felt bad because everyone else could cut better than she could. Maya could still remember having to do the assignment over two or three times.

Another event that Maya could recall was when she had writing. When she was in 3rd grade, the writing teacher had special chair. Each week a different student got to sit in the chair. Every week, when her class would be walking to writing class, she'd be wondering if she'd be the one to sit in the chair. The person who got to sit in the chair, got a sucker, a new pencil, and an eraser to put on it. In order to be chosen to sit in that special chair, they had to stay on task, pay attention, and have good writing. Maya never got to sit in the chair. She was told her writing was poor and she didn't have good hand writing. When they finished writing a piece, the teacher had them type it. Maya remembered when she finished a piece of writing, she went to a computer to type it. But, she didn't get to type. She was told that typing wouldn't help her poor hand writing. The teachers told her that they sat down and talked about her hand writing. They decided that she was going to write her piece instead of typing. Maya already hated writing, because every day she had to stay inside at recess and finish her spelling assignments.

Every day, the teacher called a student on a student to use one of their spelling words in a sentence. The teacher would write the sentence on the board. When they did about five or six sentences, the teacher would have them copy the sentences on paper. It took Maya forever to complete the assignment. They couldn't go to recess, until they finished. There were two other catches, their letters had to be prefect and there couldn't be any mistakes either. That made it hard twice as hard for Maya. One time, it was time for recess. She really wanted to go out and play. Maya slipped her assignment in her desk. She thought that she could finish it later. During recess, her teacher wondered why Maya didn't bring her the assignment to look at. Her teacher opened her desk and saw the incomplete assignment.

Maya was in for a big surprise when she came back in. Her teacher looked at her with anger. She knew something was wrong. Her teacher started screaming at her.

"MAYA, YOU WENT TO RECESS WITHOUT FINISHING THE ASSIGNMENT!"

Maya was punished by the teacher. Ever since the day Maya pulled that trick, the teacher moved spelling time to the afternoon. That was the very last thing that they did at the end of the day. It made Maya feel trapped, because she either completed the assignment or she got an incomplete.

Maya also felt broken, because not all her teachers liked her. She remembered that there was one teacher who didn't like her because she was different. Maya tried really hard to please her, but never could. Maya was often called out into the hallway and was screamed at because she didn't do an assignment right. She could still recall that her teacher called her stupid and wouldn't amount to anything. That made her feel broken because the teacher liked everyone else. She wanted to have Maya expelled because Maya was scared of fire drills, intruder drills, and losing people she was close to. However, Maya's mother and grandma fought for her. They wouldn't allow her to be expelled for something stupid.

Maya felt broken because her grades weren't always good. She had to miss school for doctor appointments. At times she missed getting notes. Most of her teachers had her ask a student to let her see their notes and write them down. But, no one would let her borrow their notes. So she needed up with a lot of C's and sometimes D's. She wanted to succeed like other kids.

Before Riley became her friend she didn't have any friend her age. A teacher told every single teacher in the school not to talk to Maya because she didn't have friends her own age. Some of the teachers listened to that teacher. But, some did not. When Maya needed to ask for something, a lot of her teachers would chase her away or act like they were busy. However, the teachers talked to other kids. Maya felt like she was being punished because she didn't have friends her own age. The kids saw the teacher chase Maya away. It made them think it was okay to make fun of her. So that caused Maya to be bullied a lot.


	4. Surprise For Riley and Maya

Cory looked at his watch, he could tell that class was about to end. He collected all of the papers and read them. He was surprised about what Riley wrote, since she had never told him much about those events. He was more surprised about Maya's paper. Maya's paper was similar to Riley's. Most of the time, he would have thought that the two students copied off of each other so they could be paired off with a friend.

Cory knew that Riley and Maya didn't become friends until 5th grade. He knew that they didn't cheat. Most of the time he wouldn't pair Riley and Maya together, when he paired them off with other kids. He thought this one time, he'd pair them off.

The next day, Cory told everyone who their partner would be. Both Riley and Maya were shocked. This was the only time that they didn't want to be partners. Both of them were scared of what the other one would think. Riley went up to her father's desk.

"Dad, why did you pair us together?"

"You had a lot in common. I thought it would be interesting on how you'd work together!"

"But, dad I didn't want you to pair us off together!"

"Riley, enough go sit down!"

Riley went back to her seat. He could tell she was mad at him. Cory looked up and Maya was at his desk. He wondered what she wanted. Cory hoped that she didn't over hear what Riley said.

"Maya, what do you need?"

"Why did you pair me with Riley?"

"If you heard what Riley said, I'm sorry. I hope it didn't hurt your feelings."

"It didn't, I feel the same way Riley does! I think you made a mistake, when you paired us off together!"

"Maya, I'm not going to argue with you either! Go back to your desk!"

Maya went back to her seat. Cory knew she was mad at him too. He decided he needed to do something. He stood up and made an announcement.

"Class, some of you aren't too happy with who I paired you with. I thought very hard, when I decided who I'd pair together. If you aren't happy with who I paired you with, raise your hand!"

Cory only saw Riley and Maya raise their hands. Everyone else didn't seem to mind. He asked the students to raise their hand if they were okay with who he paired them with. Everyone expect Riley and Maya raised their hand.

"Okay, end of discussion!" stated Cory. "Girls I want to see you at the end of class!"

When the bell rang, Riley and Maya went stayed in Cory's class. It was his planning period, so he didn't have to worry about anyone else coming in the classroom. He called their teacher that they had that period and told them that they were with him. After, he got off the phone, he looked at the girls. They knew they were in trouble.

"I don't know what is wrong with the two of you, but your behavior was uncalled for," demanded Cory. "I thought you were friends."

"We are," answered Maya. "I just don't know why you put us together."

"Your papers were similar," answered Cory. "I know that you didn't cheat. My goal was to compare the papers. I was pairing up two people who had similar experiences. You two just happen to have similar papers. So that is why I paired you together."

"Dad, you can't do this to us," begged Riley. "This stuff is personal."

"I know it is personal Riley! That's why I had you all write down what caused you to have the flaws. I didn't want the whole class to know. My goal is for you and your partner to come up with a way to overcome this flaw!" yelled Cory. "This is an assignment, and it was worth two test grades. If you don't do the assignment, you are going to get a zero. I don't want to hear another word about this. Do I make myself very clear?"

They both shook their heads yes. Riley and Maya knew Cory meant what he said. He sent them to their next class. Both of them got their stuff and left his class room. They walked to their next class. How where they were going to do their assignment? The assignment began to strain Riley and Maya's friendship. For the next two or three days they didn't walk to school together, sit together in class, or eat lunch together.


	5. Lucas and Farkle's Plan

Farkle and Lucas began to notice Riley and Maya's behavior towards each other. They didn't want them to end their friendship. The boys talked about it. They decided to talk to Cory. They asked Cory if they could see him after class. After class, he shut the door and the pulled up two chairs to Cory's desk. They began to tell him what they noticed.

"Boys, I am aware of this," stated Cory. "I hate this, I feel like I messed up again."

"You didn't mess up, "reassured Lucas. "You were just trying to get a good lesson."

"Mr. Matthews, you paired Lucas and me together," stated Farkle. "We didn't have any problems. We didn't that we had more in common. Please let us see their papers."

"Boys, usually I wouldn't allow this, but for Riley and Maya's sake, I will let you read them," answered Cory. "In fact, I'll let you read both of their papers."

They boys both read Riley and Maya's papers. Both of them were surprised that they almost had similar experiences. It made sense to them. Farkle and Lucas realized that the girls were scared to talk about their experiences.

"I think they are scared to talk about these experiences," declared Farkle. "Riley always tries to show Maya that there is hope for everything and never stop believing in things. Maya once said "Hope is for sucker," I think this is why she feels this way. She has been through a lot. I think she doesn't want anyone to know what caused her to be like that."

"Farkle is right, I understand why she feels the way she does about teachers," added Lucas. "I've got a plan."

"Lucas, what are you going to do?" asked Cory.

"We could have them meet somewhere," stated Lucas.

"Like where?" asked Cory.

"I don't know," answered Farkle. "Lucas and I are still trying to come up with a place."

"What about the park?" suggested Lucas. "The playground has a fence all the way around it. Once we get them in there, we shut the gates."

"Lucas, we don't even have a key to the park," answered Cory.

"Oh, but I do!" declared Farkle. "Not only does my dad own Minkus international, but he also helps run the park."

"Okay boys, I am going to trust you with this," answered Cory. "I hope you know what you are doing."

That night Lucas and Farkle had a sleepover at Farkle's house. Farkle got on the e-mail. He planned to e-mail the girls. Lucas wondered what Farkle said to them. He showed him the e-mail.

Dear Riley and Maya,

Your dad talked to us after class. He said that he felt like he made a mistake and he's going to pair one of you with me and the other with Lucas. Mr. Matthews said that he wasn't going to talk to you about it after class. He told us that he wanted to meet all of us at the playground in the city park, so he could talk to us about switching partners. Please meet us there tomorrow after school.

Thanks,

Farkle

"Farkle, they will never buy it," stated Lucas. "Mr. Matthews will have a fit, when he finds out what you did."

"Oh, it will work! I sent the e-mail to Mr. Matthews. He replied back and said he liked the idea. Riley and Maya e-mailed me back and said that they would be there!" declared Farkle.

"What we going to do when they see Mr. Matthews isn't there?" asked Lucas.

"That is when we lock the gates," stated Farkle. "We go will go somewhere out of sight and watch them. After they finally talk, we will let them out."


	6. Trapped Inside the Playground

The next morning, Riley woke up early. It was 4:30 AM and she couldn't sleep. Mainly because she thought that her father was finally listening to why she wanted to change partners. Since she got up early, she went to her closet to pick out what she was going to wear to school. She chose a pair of jeans, a light blue tee-shirt, and a sky-blue pullover sweater with teal, navy, turquoise, and royal blue stripes.

Meanwhile, Maya was waking up. She looked her alarm clock. It was on 5:00 AM. Like Riley, she couldn't sleep either. Maya went to her closet to choose her clothes for school. She pulled a pair of jeans, a yellow tee-shirt, and a light grey pullover sweater, with yellow, turquoise, blue, red, pink, light purple, and green stripes.

Neither Riley nor Maya had any idea that they'd be dressed similar that day. Riley rode to school with her dad that morning, while Maya walked to school. Both of them arrived to school at the same time. They went to their lockers to get their books and materials that they needed. After they got their stuff, they didn't pay much attention to each other.

When it was time to go to Cory's class, they realized that they were dressed similar. Both of them were surprised. They didn't expect that they'd be wearing similar clothes.

"Who told you what I'd be wearing today?!" demanded Riley.

"No one," answered Maya.

"Somebody had to tell you!" declared Riley.

"Honestly Riley, no one told me," answered Maya.

Cory was walking down the hall and heard Riley shouting. He knew something was wrong. He rushed down the hall to get to his classroom. When he walked in he heard Riley shouting at Maya.

"Okay, what's going on?" asked Cory.

"Dad, Maya is dressed similar to me!" answered Riley.

"So, it is no big deal," answered Cory. "You've dressed similar before."

"But, she didn't tell that she was going to dress similar to me today," answered Riley.

"Mr. Matthews, I had no idea, what Riley was going to wear today," stated Maya. "I don't see why it such a big deal."

"Riley, Maya is right," answered Cory. "I don't like to take sides, but this time I have to agree with Maya."

"You're not taking your daughter's side?!" cried Riley.

"Riley, I have had enough of your behavior this week. If you weren't my daughter, I'd send you to the office!" declared Cory.

"Well, send me to the principal!" demanded Riley.

"I told you I wasn't. Do you know how it would look if I sent you to the office?" asked Cory. "The principal would think that I couldn't control you and your behavior. We are going to have a talk about it after school."

"When you meet us after school at the park?" asked Riley.

"No," answered Cory. "We are meeting at the park because Lucas and Farkle agreed that they'd switch their partner. I will pair one of you with Lucas and the other with Farkle. Now sit down! I don't want to hear another word out of you!"

The girls took their seats. After class, the boys asked stayed behind to talk to Cory. They asked if the plan was still on. He told them that it was.

"So you do still agree not to meet them on the playground?" asked Farkle.

"Yes, I still agree not to meet them," answered Cory. "How are you going to get Riley and Maya in the playground?"

"We've told them that you said you'd meet them there. We are going to stand close to the gate; once they are both in the playground, we are going to lock the gates," answered Farkle.

"Are you sure you have a key?" asked Cory.

"Yes, I've got in my pocket," answered Farkle. "Once they are trapped in the playground we are going to hide. Once they settle things, we will let them out."

"Are you sure," answered Cory. "I've heard they are calling for severe storms today. I don't want them to be trapped in there and have no place to take cover."

"If we see bad weather is coming, we'll unlock the gates. If we don't have to time unlock the gate, my dad gave me a special pair of succors that will cut through metal. We will just cut the lock off!" answered Lucas.

Then the boys left the class. Cory wrote them both a note so they wouldn't be in trouble for being late for their next class. He hoped that they knew what they were doing. But, he trusted them because they were two of his best students.

After school, both Riley and Maya went to the park. They saw Lucas and Farkle waiting inside the gates of the playground. Farkle told them that Cory would be five minutes late, because Topanga called him and told him to pick Auggie up from school.

"While, you are waiting, why don't you go over towards the monkey bars," suggested Lucas. "You can get a better view from there. You'll be able to see when Mr. Matthews gets here."

The girls walked over towards the monkey bars. Farkle and Lucas saw them climb to the very top. Once they got to the top, the boys quietly walked out of the playground. Farkle took the key out of his pocket and unlocked the pad lock.

"Wonder when dad's going to be here?" asked Riley.

"I don't know," answered Maya. "It isn't like him to be late."

"I know," stated Riley. "They boys told us to climb up here so we can see him coming."

"Well, I do see something!" said Maya.

"What do you see?" asked Riley.

"The boys are outside the gates and it looks like they are shutting the gates for some reason. I wonder why?" questioned Maya.

"I think that they are locking us in here!" shouted Riley.

Both the girls got down from the monkey bars and took off running towards the gates. Farkle was putting the pad lock back in place. As soon as the girls got to the gate, they heard a click. They were tricked. Cory wasn't coming. The boys locked them in the playground on purpose.

"Unlock the gates!" demanded Riley.

"Sorry, we can't do that!" answered Lucas.

"Why not?" asked Maya.

"We will let you out, once you settle this disagreement you are having," answered Farkle. "I wouldn't try to climb over the fence. There is barbwire at the top of the fence. This isn't like the junk yard incident."


	7. Maya's Story

The boys began to walk towards the bench that was in the shade. Riley and Maya shook the gate, but it wouldn't open. The boys had the key, which the only way out.

"I guess we are going to be in here for a while," declared Riley.

"I guess so," answered Maya. "But we've got the whole playground to ourselves. We don't have to wait for the good swings, wait to go down the slide, and wait to use the seesaw."

"We're too old to play on the playground," declared Riley.

"I didn't get to play on the playground much as a kid," answered Maya.

"You played with me every day on the playground in 5th grade," corrected Riley.

"One whole year, I didn't get to play on the playground much," answered Maya.

"Why?" asked Riley.

"It's long story. Why don't we go sit under the treehouse, and I'll tell you about it," suggested Maya.

Riley followed Maya to the tree house. They sat under it in the sand. It wasn't as crowded it as it used to be.

"The reason why I didn't get to go to recess was because I had motor skills," stated Maya.

"What's that?" asked Riley.

"That's where you have trouble writing, coloring, cutting, running, and playing sports because your muscles were fully developed yet. I had a teacher who had us do spelling every day. She'd call on a student and they'd give her a sentence using a spelling word. After we had around five to six sentences, we had to copy them from the board. It took me forever to write. This teacher liked everything to be prefect. When we were done we had to take our paper up to her desk, and she'd check it. Letters had to be prefect and there couldn't be any mistakes. If she saw something wrong, she'd underline it with a pen and tell us to go fix it. We had to fix it, until it was prefect. We used to do that assignment before morning recess, until I pulled a trick!" stated Maya.

"What did you do?" asked Riley.

"At recess time, I put the paper in my desk and went to recess. During recess, my teacher wondered why she didn't see my assignment. She got in my desk and found my assignment. When I came back in she screamed at me. Ever since that day, we did that assignment right before afternoon recess. She had method that let her know who was finished and who wasn't," stated Maya.

"How could she tell?" asked Riley.

"She'd check our paper, once it met her satisfactory, she tell the student to put the assignment in their folder, go the bathroom and pack. If a student didn't have their book bag and jacket next to their desk, she knew they weren't finished. When it was recess, everyone who was still doing that assignment had to stay inside until they finished. I missed recess almost every day. It took me forever to write," confirmed Maya. "I had to work hard for hand writing to get better. Two years later, we had a writing class, and I hated that class. We had it once a week. In that class, there was a special chair. In order to sit in the special chair, you had to stay on task, pay attention and have good writing. Every Monday around 12:45, our homeroom teacher told us to line up it was time to go to writing class. While my class was walking down the hall headed towards the writing room, I wondered if I would be the one to sit in the special chair that week. When we got to class, the teachers would announce who got to sit in the special chair."

"What was so great about the special chair?" Riley asked.

"The one who got to sit in that special chair got a sucker, a new pencil and an eraser to put on their pencil. I never got to sit in the special chair at all that year. When a student finished writing a piece they had to type it. When I finished a piece, I headed towards a computer to type. But, I was told that I couldn't type," said Maya.

"Why couldn't you type?" asked Riley.

"They said my writing was sloppy and poor. They felt like typing wasn't going to help me. So I had to write my paper instead of typing," replied Maya.

"How did motor skills effect your coloring and cutting?" asked Riley.

"I couldn't stay inside the lines to well," confirmed Maya. "I had to go to summer school before I entered first grade. Every day we had to color. The aide would say "Maya, I want to see some real coloring instead of that scribbling you do," but she didn't realize I had motor skills. Sometimes the aide would take my paper and throw it away. I'd get another coloring page and had to start all over. One time in school we had to trace around our hand on a piece of construction paper. When we were done, we had to cut out our hand print. When I finished, I was given another piece of construction paper. I was told that I could cut better.I had redo the assignment a few times. My mom got me a special pair of scissors that would my motor skills. Some teachers let me use them. One time when we had to cut something out, a teacher's aide saw me use those special scissors. She took them away from me and I never got them back. "

"So is what has been bothering you?" asked Riley.

"Yes, it was. You already know how some of the teachers are towards me. One time I had teacher who I was scared of. Everyone else loved her, but she didn't seem to have a problem with most of the class. It was just me, when something happened, she looked straight at me. She thought I was the one who was responsible. I'd often be called out in the hall and she'd scream at me and tell me I had no worth. She couldn't understand why I was scared of intruder drills, fire drills, and loosing people that I was close to. One time she wanted to have me expelled because I took up too much of her time. She thought I needed to sit out of school for a year. But, my family would let her do that. So I got to stay in school. Before we became friends, I didn't have any friends my age. A teacher noticed that and told all the teachers in the school, not to talk to me or let me in their room for reason!" stated Maya.

"What happened?" asked Riley.

"Some of the teachers did what she asked them to do. But, some of the teachers didn't listen to her request. Several teachers chased me away or would tell me that they were busy. They talked to other kids. I felt like I was being punished because I didn't have any friends my age. The kids saw the teachers act that way towards me and it made them think it was okay to bully me," answered Maya. "Sometimes it would affect my grades. I had some doctor appointments and had to miss school. Some teachers would give me the notes that I missed. But, some told me to ask a classmate. When I asked No one would give them to me."

"So is that why you didn't want to be my partner?" asked Riley.

"Yes, I didn't want you to know how broken and insecure I am. At times I felt broken because other kids could write, color, and cut better than me. I felt broken because some of the other teachers spent more time with the popular kids and ignored me. It made me feel broken when several of the teachers wouldn't talk to me when I didn't have friends my age. And I really felt broken when no one would let me borrow their notes, it really effected my grades!" confirmed Maya.

"Maya, I'm at fault too," confessed Riley. "Some similar things happened to me. I didn't want you to know because I always try to show you to always have hope and never stop believing in things. I should tell you about my flaw."


	8. Riley's Story

"Riley, I've known that you are insecure!" stated Maya. "You told me that when you thought that you weren't going to get an award, around the time Farkle was being bullied."

"But there is more to it," confessed Riley. "More than what you know."

"Tell me," stated Maya.

"I've been insecure since elementary school," confessed Riley. "Like you, I had a teacher that I was really scared of. She yelled a lot and wanted everything to be prefect. This happened when I was six years old. We were doing a writing assignment. My teacher called on me to answer a question. I didn't know the answered. "

"What did you do?" asked Maya.

"I just sat there and didn't answer. So she called on Missy Blandford. Missy got the answer right, and the teacher told her to go get a piece of candy out of the pink basket. She started screaming at me; she said she was proud of Missy, but she was disappointed with me. I was told that I didn't try hard enough," answered Riley.

"But, Riley you are smart and you make good grades. You always know the answer, when a teacher asks you a question," confirmed Maya.

"Maya, I appreciate that," answered Riley. "There were some hard classes that I've had. I've made a few C's and I was glad to get them. One time I got a C in science on my mid-term. One of my teacher's asked to see my mid-term. When showed it to them, they said they thought I was an honor roll student. They asked me what happened, so I told them it was a hard class," answered Riley. "I went home crying that day. My mom called the school to talk to my science teacher, to see what I could do to bring my grade up. However, when my mom called to talk to the teacher, the sectary told her that my science teacher had left school for the day."

"Was that the only class, you got a remark about your grades?" asked Maya.

"No, there was one other time," answered Riley. "One time we started a new unit in math, which was graphs. I had trouble with graphs. I got a C on my report card. One of my teachers saw my report card and they talked to me about it. They said I was one of their best students and they expected better from me. I told them I was having a hard time, but they said I was making an excuse. They said I wasn't trying and a C wasn't acceptable. They told me their definition of a C grade was "Can do better, but average," they said they were disappointed with me."

"Everybody makes a C every now and then," answered Maya.

"I know that," answered Riley. "I always make a C in PE. I'm not good at sports and I'm always the last one chosen."

"You made the cheerleading team," declared Maya.

"I don't know how long it will last," answered Riley.

"If it doesn't last long, it's their loss. Find something else you like," stated Maya.

They girls were finally glad that they finally told each other the truth. Both of them hugged and made up. They headed towards the gate.

"Farkle, will you let us out now!?" asked Riley.

"Yes," answered Farkle. "We watched you the whole time. We walked around the playground and heard you talk."

"Just let us out!" demanded Maya.

"Okay, let me get the key out of my pocket," answered Farkle.

Farkle put the key in lock. He turned it, but he didn't hear a click. He looked at Lucas. Riley and Maya sensed that there was something wrong.

"Lucas, I can't get the gate to open," whispered Farkle.

"Let me try?" asked Lucas.

He handed Lucas the key. Lucas put the key in the pad lock and he turned the key. He didn't hear a click.

"What's taking so long?" demanded Maya.

Lucas went over to his book bag and got the special pair of succors. He cut the pad lock off the gate. Maya tried open the gate, but it wouldn't open. Farkle tried to open the gate. As soon as he touched the gate he got paint of his hands.

"I think they just painted the fence," Farkle said quietly.

"What do you mean they painted the fence?!" demanded Riley.

"When we were walking around we saw somebody with a paint can. They looked like they were painting the gate. I am afraid that the paint has dried," answered Lucas.

"How are we going to get out?" asked Riley.

"We'll go get Janitor Harley," answered Farkle. "He's at school until 6:30."

It began to rain. All of them knew storms were about to take place. The boys told the girls they'd be back as soon as they could. Riley and Maya hoped it wouldn't be too long.


	9. Secret Passage

Riley and Maya stood at the gate. They watched the boys walk away, until they were out of sight. Maya looked up at the sky, and saw the sky was dark. Riley felt heavy rain begin hit her clothes.

"Maya, I think we better take cover!"

"Where, there is nowhere to go!?"

"We could go set underneath the tree house?"

"But there is nothing to protect us!"

"Maya, did you forget that the tree house has two stories. The top layer is where people can go down the slide or slide down the pole. The bottom layer is where people sit, when they want to play in the sand. Our heads will be covered."

They rushed towards the tree house. Both of them sat in the bottom layer where the sand was. They watched the rain get heavier. Where were the boys? Did they find janitor Harley?" Riley and Maya moved closer together.

"Riley, I think I hear a loud noise!"

"It must be the sirens going off!"

"We don't have anywhere else to go!"

Riley looked around to see if there were any ditches they could get it. She moved a little closer toward the edge of the tree house. As soon as she moved closer, she feel through a hole.

"Riley are you okay?"

"Yes, I think I found our answer."

Maya jump down into the hole. When she hit the ground, she saw Riley using her cell phone as a flash light. Maya turned her cell phone on to add some light. When she turned her cellphone on, they saw they were in some type of secret passage.

"I wonder, where this passage leads to."

"Riley, I don't know."

"But, we can follow it!"

They continued to walk down the through the secret passage. As they got farther and farther, they saw there was floor tile on the ground. It must be a basement or an abandoned room. The girls continued to walk down the hallway. They saw that the walls were made of bricks. Riley pulled out her phone to call the boys.

Meanwhile Farkle and Lucas were running to the school. Farkle heard his cell phone ring. They were close to the school. So he answered it.

"Hello," answered Farkle.

"Farkle, it's Riley, you will never believe what we found!" declared Riley.

"Shouldn't you be taking cover?" asked Farkle.

"We got underneath the tree house. I moved a little closer to see if there was a ditch. When I moved closer, I fell through a hole. Maya jumped down, after I fell. We've been walking for a while," stated Riley. "I think we found a secret underground passage!"

"Where does it lead to?" asked Farkle.

"We don't know yet," answered Riley. "We will call you when we find out where it leads to."

"Okay, Bye," said Farkle.

The girls continued to walk down the hall, until they were in a huge room. The room had tables and chairs. It looked like it was a restaurant of some sort. They looked around to see if they passage went any farther. Riley saw a long hall way. They continued to walk down the hall. As they walked through the hallway, they saw old book cases and desks. It must have been an old library.

Maya urged Riley to keep moving. They walked a little farther. As they got farther, they saw a sit of stairs. They walked up the stairs, until their heads almost touched the ceiling of the passage. Riley looked all around to see if they weren't at a dead end. Maya touched the ceiling to see if there was a way out. But when she touched the ceiling, she noticed that it was beginning to crumble. Riley and Maya stepped back. Once the roof caved in, the finished walking down up the stairs. They saw light up ahead they were at the end of the tunnel. The girls followed the light and they came out at a familiar place.


	10. The Pact

Riley and Maya knew it was Cory's classroom. They saw Cory talking to Lucas and Farkle. Lucas was explaining the situation to Cory. Riley knew Cory didn't look too happy.

"Boy's you told me, that you had this under control!" stated Cory. "Do you realize that a really bad storm is about to take place and my kid and her friend is trapped in the playground?"

"Dad, its okay," interrupted Riley.

"Thank you Riley," answered Cory. "Boys', you are in trouble!"

"Dad it is okay, we are safe!" shouted Riley.

Cory turned around and saw that Maya and Riley were standing in his classroom. He ran over to the girls and hugged them. Cory was glad to see that they were okay. He was puzzled about how they got in his room. They didn't walk through a door.

Maya told him about the underground tunnel that found in the playground. She told him how they found what it looked like inside. Cory couldn't believe that there was an underground passage from the city play ground to his classroom.

"We're going to have to look into this!" stated Cory. "This is really unbelievable! I never dreamed that there would be an underground passage. I'm going to talk to the principal and see if we can explore it."

"Dad are the boys off the hook?" asked Riley.

"Yes, Riley they are off the hook," answered Cory. "Have you decided what you and Maya are going to do for your assignment to overcome your flaws?"

"No, but we will," answered Maya. "Riley and I have to talk about our idea."

"Okay, girls I'm glad to hear that," answered Cory. "We'll stay here until the storm passes."

Riley and Maya sat down to talk about an idea. Riley thought of an idea. She hoped that Maya liked it.

"Maya, I've got an idea," stated Riley.

"Okay, what is it?" asked Maya.

"We could form a pact," suggested Riley.

"What kind of pact?" asked Maya.

"To forget the past, enjoy the present, look forward to the future, and use our gifts to make others happy," answered Riley. "How about it are you in? We would make a good team."

"Riley, I like the idea," answered Maya. "Let's do it."

So Riley and Maya formed a pact to help them overcome their past hurts. The class liked their idea. Cory gave them an A on the assignment. Even after the assignment was over, Riley and Maya still continued to have that pact. They ran into some hard times. But, they always helped the other one other. They knew they'd continue to have that pact for a long time.


End file.
